Experimental study on pedestrian movement on elevated platforms

Comprehending pedestrian movement behavior on platforms is crucial for enhancing the safety of railway tunnels, particularly during emergencies. This study performed a series of pedestrian walking and running experiments on a 0.6 m high platform. By analyzing the movement capability and spatial distribution characteristics, the potential influences and differences of crowd movement under unprotected and restricted boundaries were explored. The results reveal that both the motion modes and boundary types influence the behavior mechanism of pedestrians. Compared to the restricted boundary condition, it is found that the impact of unprotected boundary on pedestrian movement is primarily reflected in increased speed for walking (7 % faster) and increase of headway distance (about 25 %) for running. Pedestrians moving on the unprotected side exhibit smaller boundary distances than those on the restricted side but show greater heterogeneity in their distribution. The nearest neighbor distribution indicates that a higher acceptance of front neighbors among pedestrians near boundaries. Those running near the unprotected side need a larger movement comfort radius to accommodate their motion. This study provides empirical data to address the gap in the field, which can serve as a basis for modeling and enable the accurate simulation of pedestrian flows on platforms, thereby facilitating the development of more reasonable crowd guidance measures and ultimately enhancing tunnel evacuation safety. © 2025 Elsevier Ltd